Delhi is a hub for Biotechnology-Major Institutes

This review covers major institutes offering biotechnology education and research in Delhi.

THE INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR GENETIC ENGINEERING AND BIOTECHNOLOGY
http://www.icgeb.trieste.it/
The International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology conducts innovative research in life sciences for the benefit of developing countries. It strengthens the research capability of its Members through training and funding programmes and advisory services and represents a comprehensive approach to promoting biotechnology internationally

Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology
http://www.igib.res.in/
IGIB mission " To translate concepts developed in basic biological research to commercially viable technologies for health care ".

JNU, New Delhi (School of life Sciences)
http://www.jnu.ac.in/main.asp?sendval=SchoolOfLifeSciences
The School stands today as a unique institution in the country where multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary teaching and research in life sciences have established permanent roots. The uniqueness of the School essentially lies in the fact that within the School’s faculty there are experts and active researchers representing almost all areas of modern biology. Life sciences in its entirety constitute wide range of our research programmes.

National Institute of Immunology
http://www.nii.res.in/
The National Institute of Immunology (NII) is an autonomous institution supported by the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India. The Institute is committed to advanced research addressing the basic mechanisms involved in body defence, host-pathogen interactions and related areas with a view to contribute to the creation of an internationally competitive intellectual knowledge base as a sustainable source of innovative futuristic modalities of potential use in health care.

Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI)
http://www.iari.res.in/
The Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) is the country's premier national Institute for agricultural research, education and extension. It has served the cause of science and society with distinction through first rate research, generation of appropriate technologies and development of human resources.

Defence Institute of Physiology & Allied Sciences (DIPAS)
http://www.drdo.org/labs/dls/dipas/index.shtml
Major Biotechnology Programme
(i) Development of nonspecific response by Stress Proteins.
(ii) Search for Stress Resistant Macromolecule

Institute of Nuclear Medicine & Allied Sciences (INMAS)
http://www.drdo.org/labs/dls/inmas

Jamia Hamdard University, New Delhi
http://www.jamiahamdard.edu/course_science.asp#biotech
Over a period of last ten years, Jamia Hamdard has emerged as an outstanding institution of higher learning with distinct and focused academic programmes.

Delhi University, South Campus
http://south.du.ac.in/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12&Itemid=50


Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Center for Biomedical Research
http://www.acbrdu.edu/
Laboratries are the fundamental units of the ACBR. headed by a senior faculty member. The lab may include several other junior faculty members plus post doctoral fellows and graduate fellows; who share the common scientific interests of the group. This structure provides flexibility and enhances the opportunity for intellectual interaction and collaboration, and minimizes the administrative traffic that may impede academic life.

Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi
http://www.iitd.ernet.in/deptt/beb/
The Department of Biochemical Engineering & Biotechnology at IIT Delhi has a unique place in the development of biochemical engineering discipline in India. The Institute took an early note of the significant role that was to be played by biochemical engineers and biotechnologists in future industrial development of biotechnology related processes and products by initiating this activity in 1968. At present the Department provides a model for an integrated approach towards education as well as research and development of various bioprocesses.

National Institute of Malaria Research
http://www.icmr.nic.in/pinstitute/mrc.htm
The technical programmes of the Centre may be broadly classified into the disciplines of vector biology and control, genetics and cytogenetics, parasitology, pharmacology and epidemiology. Emphasis is being placed on molecular biology, biochemistry and molecular epidemiology.

All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi
http://www.aiims.edu/aiims/departments/Biotechnology/biotechintro.htm
Biotechnology has emerged as a major force not only in industrial terms but also as a discipline where in frontier areas of biology are being integrated to enhance the quality of human life. The development of immunology and molecular biology have been integrated with modern virology, microbiology and fermentation technology to yield rich dividends in the form of medical products such as insulin, erythropoietin etc., as well as sensitive and specific diagnostic procedure for infectious diseases and inherited disorders.

National Centre for Plant Genome Research
http://www.ncpgr.nic.in/
The establishment of the Centre followed several years of intensive research on various facets of both fundamental as well as applied aspects of plant molecular biology, under the auspices of the DBT-sponsored Centre for Plant Molecular Biology (CPMB) in the School of Life Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Consequently the research projects of four principal investigators who initiated the CPMB constitute the ongoing research programme of the Centre. With the identification of chickpea (Cicero arietinum) as a mandate crop of the Centre to pursue genomic studies, the focus of the research is slowly shifting to chickpea genomics. The programme at the moment is being implemented from the CPMB building and is expected to continue there till the NCPGR has its own research labs

National Brain Research Centre, New Delhi
http://www.nbrc.ac.in/
This centre is didecated to provide infrastructural facilities and a coordinated multidisciplinary team to work at the frontiers of neuroscience research and network the existing groups and whenever required create satellite units to catalyze the overall growth of this discipline in the country .This system of networking will create and encourage local talent and by a judicious exchange of workers between the peripheral centres and the core centre. Besides research, the centre provides a national level nucleus for comprehensive training and teaching in diverse fields of neurosciences.

Monopoly of BCCI- Save Indian Cricket

Now BCCI is worried about Essel Group-promoted Indian Cricket League (ICL). BCCI has termed ICL as an establishment-threatening, parallel tournament designed on the lines of Australian media mogul Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket (WSC) of the late 1970s that shook the cricket world, especially the Australian cricket board. They are worrying that ICL wants to run a parallel body.

As of now, ICL has signed former India captain Kapil Dev, Kiran More, Sandeep Patil, former England skipper Tony Greig and ex-Australia batsman Dean Jones to either conduct the tournament or coach some of the six teams that are to play 20 overs per side matches, probably in October-November. The winner in the first tournament will receive $1 million. The matches will be telecast on Zee's in-house Zee Sports channel. Each team will have two players from the Indian team and four foreign players, to add to the glamour.

But BCCI is unhappy about Kapil dev joining ICL as he is also serving as the chairman of the National Cricket Academy (NCA). But Kapil dev as always known for his fighting attitude has written back to BCCI, asking the reasons for its displeasure on his decision. "I thought the ICL would be of assistance. I would be most grateful if you could elaborate on the reasons of the board's displeasure on this, to help me understand the situation more clearly," Kapil writes in his letter to the BCCI.

"Our only intention is to promote and improve our resources of players, for the betterment of the Indian Team. We did not realise at all that we would only have to go one way: that of the BCCI. It is our moral duty to assist people who have the best interests of the game at heart, whether it is in India or abroad. " as stated in Kapil dev's letter to BCCI.

Zee television boss Subhash Chandra had told Sharad Pawar 17 days before announcing the tournament of "inevitable necessity". Chandra, in fact, told Pawar that BCCI would gain from ICL. "An initiative of this nature will, in my view, greatly assist the cricketing establishment here and the world over. This will undoubtedly make the task of BCCI in promoting and managing the game of cricket more comfortable and efficient." Chandra said he would have launched the ICL a bit later, but the World Cup result forced his hands.

Why BCCI has objection on anything which is for betterment of cricket and who knows that some good players might emerge from ICL.

I think after shameful defeat of India in world cup, BCCI should leave its monopoly on Cricket in India and let good talent come out by anyway from anywhere .

God ! Save Indian cricket from BCCI !!!

co-education is unlawful-In which century are we living ?

Darul Uloom Deoband was asked to comment, by an Aligarh resident, on the provisions in Islam with regard to co-education. In response, the fatwa issued on July 1 by Darul Ifta (Darul Uloom’s unit that deals with fatwas) states that co-education is unlawful as it gives rise to evil. The Darul Uloom (Urdu: dārul ulūm devband) is an Islamic madrassa (seminary) famous for being the inception place of the Deobandi Islamic movement. It is located at Deoband, a town in Uttar Pradesh, India.

The fatwa said Muslim women must not interact with the opposite sex without hijab and co-education was unlawful because, in colleges and universities, it gave rise to evil—even if these institutions imparted religious education.

This is really the high time for Muslims to think whether they would like to follow these fatwas, As it is the level of education among Muslims in India isn’t good. Such fatwas will only add to their misery. Government can not afford to make separate medical, engineering etc colleges for girls and boys, in this case if muslims follow these fatwas, most likely muslim girls will either have to stop their education or choose to study something, which will not help them become independent. Being born a girl or boy does not differentiate two individuals on ability. These fatwas will only make gender inequality worse in our country.

Keep your brain cool by yawning

For many years yawning has been associated with sleepiness and boredom, and with low oxygen levels in the blood.

The brain burns up to a third of the calories we consume, and as a consequence generates a lot of heat. The brain operates more efficiently when cool and yawning enhances its functioning by increasing blood flow and drawing in cooler air, reported by Andrew Gallup, a psychology professor at the State University of New York at Albany.

The study may also help explain why yawning spreads from person to person.
A cooler brain, Gallup said, is a clearer brain.
So yawning actually appears to be a way to stay more alert. And contagious yawning, he said, may have evolved to help groups remain vigilant against danger.

Some interesting facts : An average yawn lasts about six seconds. The heart rate can rise as much as 30% during a yawn. Nearly 55% of people will yawn within five minutes of seeing someone else yawn. Blind people yawn more after hearing an audio tape of people yawning.

Magic of 7-7-7 - Lucky day

7-7-7 whats going to happen in your life ? Unlike last year's unlucky number 6-6-6, this year its 7-7-7 which is supposed to be a lucky number in many ways as beleived by many.

Couples across the Western world are tying thier knot on this day to make thier life happy and prosperous though here many Hindus may not do the same as there may not be good mahurat on this day. 7-7-7 has become a date on whcih so many events are going to be happen, The play on seven has also proved irresistible for event organisers. The ‘New 7 Wonders of the World’ will be announced at an official declaration ceremony in Lisbon, Portugal, on Saturday.

Seven is a crucial numeral in the Bible. Creation took all of seven days, there are seven petitions of the Lord’s prayer and, not to forget, there are seven levels of Heaven.

The number of sages in Hindu mythology; their wives are the goddesses referred to as the "Seven Mothers."

Seven Lucky Gods exist in Japanese mythology.

The Indian Music has 'sapta swaras', means seven octats (sa re ga ma pa tha ni), which are basics of music, using which hundreds of Ragas are composed.

The reason for 7 being a lucky number symbolically (such as in the Bible) is because it represents the union of man and woman, since the number for women is 4 and the number for men is 3.

SMS based Television shows- Talent hunt

Why there are so many game shows coming to find out good singer from India....oh no, now even from world (first world war of sangeet).

There have been so many competitions in the past specially for judging singing ability like Antakshiri, meri awaz suno, Saare gaama, Indian idols and so on. Though in past, we have seen great singers coming out of these shows. best examples are sriya ghosal and sunidhi chauhan. Even shekhar of Vishal-shekhar group has been to one of these shows. But what is happening about today's mega shows winners. Where do they go after winning competition. They come in limelight for short time, some even get one or two albums, that's all. Why does it happen ?

Earlier these shows were used to be at much little scale but they were used to be very tough and judged by Great singers or music directors but now the funda is SMS-based television shows. This SMS based trick improves the TRP of the show and generate lot of revenues but quality of the programmes has gone down. Do you remember who won last year Indian idol or saregama or what are they (winners) doing now ?

Whole thing is that ki bhaiya sabse bada rupaiya.

Forget the quality!!!!!!

Female gets attracted to male !!!!!

When female mice detects dominant male's urine, new brain cells are produced in female mice. Urine is rich in the sex pheromones that many animals use to recognize and choose their mates. But how they work is unclear. So Samuel Weiss from the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada, and his colleagues looked at their effects on the brain.

The results, published in Nature Neuroscience, suggest that pheromones from dominant males stimulate the female brain to make new neurons. Weiss thinks that the pheromones bind to specialized receptor proteins, which then signal to another brain region called the hypothalamus, triggering the release of hormones that cause the birth of new neurons.

We don't know whether pheromones trigger neuron formation in humans, although we do have receptors similar to those found in mice. It's possible that some types of human sexual behaviour could be affected by pheromones, says Zhengui Xia from the University of Washington in Seattle, who studies neuron production. But whether a subconscious whiff of an alpha-male's urine could turn a woman's head is still a matter of speculation. "Olfaction is a subtle and underappreciated sense," says Weiss. "Maybe we've underestimated its importance."